“Before Steve came back, sales executives were gutting Apple worse than the Capital One plunderers and rewarding themselves handsomely. (While Michael Spindler was looking to sell out.) None of the sales executives survived when Steve returned, and sales executives were rendered much less powerful. As bizarre as it seems, the sales organization can no longer even do marketing,” John Martellaro writes for The Mac Observer.
“These days, Apple has about $10B in the bank. That’s the result of years and years of rolling the profits into paying off debt and saving for a rainy day. Excellent. That $10B earns a lot of interest. But one analyst asked a few years ago whether Apple was simply running a credit union. The implication is that that much money either needs to be paid in dividends, which Apple won’t do, or be put to good work,” Martellaro writes.
Martellaro writes, “No one knows what Apple has in mind for that kind of money. My theory has been that Apple’s board of directors has been accumulating cash for a seriously large merger at the appropriate time. For a while, some thought it was Disney. It’ll be something much bigger than a mere $500M for a new campus. Or $50M for a new data center. No, I mean something so big, it’ll change the face of computing in America.”
“Apple appears to be transitioning to a much more consumer electronics focus. Back in the days, pre-iPod, when Apple was in its $6B/year doldrums, it was possible to put up barriers, remain a little arrogant (in order to keep the religious fervor alive), create a fever of endless product surprises, and remain distant from its customers. But as the Cluetrain Manifesto points out, companies that put up barriers, lock themselves behind walls, and refuse to actually talk with their customers get into trouble very quickly,” Martellaro writes.
Martellaro writes, “Apple realized that if they were going to become a consumer electronics company, they needed to have a store front presence on Main Street, USA. They’ve solved a major part of this ‘Castle and Moat’ complex with the Genius Bar at more than 150 retail sites, well placed with respect to population centers in the U.S. Even so, it’s interesting that the people who work in the Apple stores are a different kind of Apple employee, badged differently, and do not have a whole lot of authority. In time, that will have to change.”
Martellaro writes, “Apple is a mature company now, both technically and financially. The key to understanding how Apple is going to make this transition — from a computer company that has a popular electronic gadget, the iPod — into a company that has a portfolio of popular and useful electronic devices for the 21st century will be to watch where the money goes, up and down the organization. And with that money, authority and responsibility.”
Full article with much more here.
MacDailyNews Take: Buy Adobe. Clean out the dreck. Discontinue Windows versions of Photoshop, Dreamweaver, Illustrator, InDesign, Premiere, etc.
Hey, it’s just an idea. 
Related articles:
How long must we wait for Adobe to produce Universal applications for Apple’s Intel-powered Macs? – August 21, 2006
Cost of Apple’s second 50-acre Cupertino campus could top $500 million – April 25, 2006
Video: Steve Jobs meets Cupertino City Council – April 22, 2006
Transcript: Apple CEO Steve Jobs addresses the Cupertino City Council – April 20, 2006
Apple CEO Steve Jobs plans new 50-acre campus in California – April 19, 2006
Should Apple buy Adobe as leverage against Microsoft? – December 16, 2005
Adobe prefers (and promotes) PCs over Macs – March 24, 2003
Talk about brewing speculation!
$10 billion. Hm…
Steve found a Monolith! He’s going to Jupiter! He will become the Star Child!
New plane for the Steve.
I wonder how much cash Steve Jobs has in his jeans on an average day?
MW: consider
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Hostile takeover.
Microsoft.
Discontinuing a Windows version of Creative Suite would only open the market for a competetor to enter. Not wise. Instead, how about continue to develop creative suite…just make the Universal Binary for OS X a priority and the Windows versions the red headed step child that comes out 6-9 mo. later. That would still lock out competition while driving users to the OS X platform.
“MacDailyNews Take: Buy Adobe. Clean out the dreck.”
Could you please explain or detail the “dreck” you talking about?
And do remember that new Macs run Windows and Windows versions of software….
Why would you discontinue the largest segment of your business?
Suddenly, and purposely loosing hundreds of millions in sales just for spite doesn’t seem like a good business model. What share of the music player market would Apple have without Windows?
I’m sure glad Steve is in charge and not you.
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”wink” style=”border:0;” />
P.S.: Just being sarcastic in case you’re dull…
“Buy Adobe. Clean out the dreck. (Chizen? LOL) Discontinue Windows versions of Photoshop, Dreamweaver, Illustrator, InDesign, Premiere, etc.”
If that happens, I’m not sure if I’ll be able to stop laughing. We’ll also be able to run Windows but why use a platform without useful software?
I think Apple should concentrate on getting Voiceover to sound like HAL, Peter Jones, Stephen Franklyn and Stephen Fry.
Better yet, buy Adobe and El Gato and itegrate its technology on like iMacTV. I’ll be OK with iMacTV 23 inchs at badroom and a 32 in the family room.
Discontinue Windows versions… hahaha
MDN has a razor sharp business acumen.
You know, the “dreck” that are so slow to update Photoshop CS to UB. The “dreck” that allowed the code to be written without X Code, after they had been warned about it. The “dreck” that put a sales guy in charge. The “dreck” that has allowed the Microsoftization of Photoshop, with tons of palettes and features that are not intuitive to use. I’m sure there’s more “dreck”, but that’s off the top of my head.
Oh, just remembered another, the “dreck” that essentially turned Photoshop into a Windows port, as it was shown to be unoptimized for OS X. Is that enough “dreck” that needs to be cleaned out?
f*@k adobe, buy autodesk, they are the mac haters, and they are what the mac needs, especially now they own all the cards (maya, 3d max, cad)
Correction: William Franklyn
So, what would it cost to buy Adobe?
Apple IS a software company after all that just happens to make incredible hardware too.
Once MSFT plummets to a penny stock, hire Ballmer to wear a tiny hat and squat on downtown street corners begging for coins with a little tin cup while rocking back and forth to the enchanting music of Bill the Organ Grinder. Then hire Michael Dell to wear a bright pink ballerina costume and frantically clap and cackle like an idiot to draw crowds. Finally, sell it to Fox for the fall line-up.
Adobe (ADBE) current market value: $19.88 billion.
Apple could quite easily execute a takeover of Adobe (hostile or otherwise) if Jobs wished to do so.
And do remember that new Macs run Windows and Windows versions of software….
But why would we want to run a sub standard OS when we can run the far superior and safer OS X???????
I don’t think anyone has any trouble remembering that one can run Windows on a Mac … but why would one want to?
Apple buys Dell?
Somehow I find that amusing, and difficult to wrap my head around.
Apple buys HP? Makes just a teensy bit more sense than Dell, but too expensive (100B)
I know… Apple buys Verizon! Nah, also too expensive (100B)
Adobe (20B) does make the most sense of the ones that come to mind right away.
Personally, I think the most obvious “Consumer Electronics” company for a meger would be Dell. They have all the facilities to manufacture the products, they have the recognizable name, and, AND, it would be a way to potentially, reduce Microsofts install base by making their OS a secondary option in the configuration.
TThe author can genereate a 500 word fluff piece very well. He speculates much and offers nothing. It weas a waste ofg time reading it. The responses were much more interesting. For instance:
Why would you discontinue the largest segment of your business?
Suddenly, and purposely loosing hundreds of millions in sales just for spite doesn’t seem like a good business model. What share of the music player market would Apple have without Windows?
Microsoft did this with Office for the Mac. They’re strategy was to make Windows versions work better, thereby putting pressure on firms/consumers to switch to Windows. It worked too.
If Apple were to discontinue Windows versions of Adobe’s products the firms that bought them would not go away, they would, by necessity, switch to Mac.
I speculated, on this board, a while back that Apple may want to buy Adobe as a hedge against Microsoft screwing with Office in the future. Screw with Office we’ll release our own Office-like product and screw with Adobe, then let’s see where the share goes.
Apple’s always had a cash hoard.
$10,000,000,000 + Intel + Apple = Nationwide WiMax network
WiMax = Threat to cell carriers = new era of mobile computing.
$10,000,000,000 + Intel + Apple = new era of mobile computing.
Maybe?
andy: f*@k adobe, buy autodesk, they are the mac haters, and they are what the mac needs, especially now they own all the cards (maya, 3d max, cad)
Heh. Market cap for AutoDesk is just under $8B. You could do it, and have enough left over for a healthy stake in Adobe.
But would that “change the face of computing as we know it”?
MW: deal, as in “It’s such a….”
yeah, they wouldnt discontinue windows production if they bought adobe, just crank the price tag up like on shake, then discontinue lol
It’s a chess board. But that’s nothing new.
Were AAPL to buy anyone strategically, it would have to be…….VZ. Okay, they have a market cap of $100B, but what about Sprint – $50B?
Similarly, Cingular is up there. It’s no secret the future is about anything, anywhere, anytime. So maybe go satellite. Iridium. 66 planet girdling satellites that can be had cheap. Iridium Satellite paid just $25M for the $5B network from Motorola. They have lots of debt, and a growing base of customers.
Just a thought.
You do not make large acquisitions with cash. You use stock.
You make small acquisitions with cash.
“…put up barriers, remain a little arrogant (in order to keep the religious fervor alive), create a fever of endless product surprises, and remain distant from its customers.”
The Apple manifesto is alive, well, thriving… Genius Bars are not the answer. Depending on the mood of the ‘genius’ you get, it might be a little helpful, but it’s no substitute for really caring about your customers and Apple doesn’t care care about much of anything other than itself.
Although I like MDNs take on what to do with all the cash, it would be nice to see them use some of it to compensate those of you who couldn’t wait and now face serious remorse with your intro versions of MacBook and MacBook Pro.
Apple buys Intel?
By the way, Apple is a hardware company, more so then software.
Pete,
I have a 17-inch Apple MacBook Pro with a 2.16GHz Core Duo and 2GB of RAM.
Zero problems. It just works. And it turns heads everywhere I go.
I have no buyer’s remorse whatsoever.
Makes no sense to buy Adobe.
Independently is correct – so long as it’s a public company you want to buy, or a private one where the owners are prepared to take your stock.
Most likely use of cash is massive investment in infrastructure.
I would lean towards a paradigm shift – a visionary move. Such as a deploying a satellite network or building a telecom infrastructure. A takeover of a consumer company such as Sony (funded partly through stock). But I don’t really see the benefit for Apple of buying a consumer products company. I would think more of content – like buying movie libraries. Or a joint venture with Google. Knowing Apple and Steve Jobs (okay, I don’t, but you know what I mean) I would bet it will be spectacular.
SONY CORP current market cap is US$45.340BN — so, maybe a quarter of Sony? Maybe not!
ADOBE SYSTEMS INC current market cap is US$19.217BN — stock and cash would probably do it.
Or maybe Steve Jobs is planning a buyback like Microsoft (Market Cap US$266.455BN) are currently executing?
Stto, remember a takeover of a public company is usually stock, or stock and part cash.
But I don’t think Sony makes sense. Too much goodwill.
Apple Corp buying Dell makes a lot of sense.
Apple has $10 billion cash
Dell market capitalization is $48 billion makes LTV 80% well within capacity and would take Apple to number 1 or 2 in the world in one hit.
Cool
Matt – “Personally, I think the most obvious “Consumer Electronics” company for a meger would be Dell”
Apple wouldn’t need to buy Dell because Dell do most of their manufacturing elsewhere.
If Apple wanted to have computers built on the scale that Dell do, all they need to do is to commission larger quantities to be assembled in Chinese factories.
Dell don’t need to be bought out, they can be squeezed out and are already being squeezed out by others. When your unique advantage is selling at a lower price, there is usually somebody who can figure out a way to sell for less.
My guess is that if Apple have specific plans for that money, it will not be to buy something that already exists, but to invest in something completely new and to invent an entirely new type of product or service.
I think Apple ought to buy the tiny island of Bermuda, soak up all the tourists money with the flagship Micro$oft museum with life sized wax replicas of MonkeyBoy, Gates, Dell, and so forth with each of their voices recorded reciting Shelley’s famous sonnet, “Ozymandias”.
I agree with Autodesk… although buying a stake in Adobe isn’t a bad idea either.
Yeah I know it’s all stock or stock+partcash for large transactions.
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”smile” style=”border:0;” /> Should’ve said I was highlighting how much cash Apple have in bank versus Market Caps of companies being discussed.
There’s also the downside with too much cash, makes for takeover target via leveraged debt. 😮
Elgato has got to be on the chopping block, Apple already have the CEO, and the products are perfect for Apple with little or no effort.
And then once Parralells is out of Beta buy that one as well.
if they buy anything it will be a gaming company. Apple has made multiple moves in the last few months toward gaming.
Have considered for a while that Apple could buy SUN MICROSYSTEMS INC (market cap US$16.344BN) as first move in a Unix provider consolidation move.
But when one looks at Apple’s M&A history, they haven’t done anything since 1992. Compare that to Microsoft who’ve have 11 acquisitions so far in 2006.
Not sure that aquisition is Apple’s path.
Beware of this tale: there was a great British company called GEC. It had billions in the bank and was regarded as safer than a bank. Under pressure to spend, the now post Arnold Weinstock managment did just that. A splurge into telcoms companies, a sale of its defence industry business to buy more, and wham, 2000 comes and it was busted. Its shares fell from £14 to £0.03.
So, if Apple wants to keep this cash hoard, fine. Just DON’T put pressure on them to spend it just for the sake of it!!!
I think Apple should concentrate on getting Voiceover to sound like Lurch.
Parallels would be a no brainer – Good technology and cheap.
Adobe – Definately. It focuses on the creative industries which is Apple’s sweet spot.
Autodesk – Not sure about these guys. They don’t have mac products and there is no guarantee that enough people would use mac versions of their products
Dell – No way. Cheapo mediocre technology. Why would Apple want them? Unless it wants the coporate customer base.
Two other potential candidates:
Avid Corporation – Huge creative arts company
Native Instruments – Probably the best music software company in the world.
Apple could also buy controlling interest on some of these. Companies like Oracle have done that succesfully in the past.
@The MacDaddy-Oh!
Self-abusive animatronic taxidermy?
“As bizarre as it seems, the sales organization can no longer even do marketing,””
And here we find the reason why Apple is better than MS.
Apple shoudl take that money and build a giant 50 mile high tower in the center of the US, offer WiMax high speed internet, cell phone service, and blow the phone and cable companies out of the water with one fell swoop. Then do it over in every continent.
a couple of years ago i would have said SONY. but considering how they have been faltering lately, it appears that they have a fundamental culture issues that would make the merger very unlikely.
DELL. be real people. do you think the Michael Dell people will get along with the Steve Jobs and free thinkers of Apple. Get real.
Elgato will be a nice little company to buy. but i am betting Apple is already working on their own DVR functionalities into Quicktime. So very soon Elgato will be irrelevant.
Adobe? why buy them out. Apple is doing well with its own iLife product for consumers. and even with its own professional products. Adobe is not needed anymore.
i am betting Apple will invest heavily into wireless iPhone and services. Look for them to double in sizes in the next few years. It will be a lot easier to do it that way, better integration plan, better control. Buying somebody out will mean lots of training, lots of churn getting them integrated into Apple culture.
Discontinuing Window’s version of Adobe products would render that investment a huge loser.
Steve Jobs should use the cash to buy an extinct volcano, inside of which he should build his lair.
Two words (ten, if you count them all):
Space Elevator.
I am surprised no one has mentioned Intuit as a possible takeover target. Apple could use Intuit’s existing banking and credit card processing operations to develop new and innovative financial products. Like what? I don’t know, because they would be new. And innovative.
And they could at last give us a good Mac version of QuickBooks, while they’re at it.
INTU’s market cap is $10.68 billion, according to Google Finance.
Buying out Clearasil will defnitely change the face of computing.
It’s amazing how someone can write so many words, and still say nothing.
Consumer gadgets?… Has to be Sharper Image…
I can hardly wait to pick up my Mac Core Duo Nose Hair Clipper.
I too believe Schreck will build an adobe house.
Apple had about 4 to 6 billions before Steve came back. Where was the merger? Slow news day for the writer!
“Discontinuing Window’s version of Adobe products would render that investment a huge loser.”
I disagree. It would force all creatives to the Mac. However, I like the idea of holding it over Microsoft’s head and ensuring that they keep Office going. They could also allow Adobe’s apps to meet their true potential by giving them access to all the Core technologies, which would slowly squeeze MS out of the creative space because the Windows version wouldn’t be as good. Unfortunately, Adobe will never do this because Windows has no equivalent to the Core tech.
I think Ray has the answer
Ampar, I like your organ grinder suggestion, but you forgot to mention selling the video on iTMS.
Apple could merge with Google and take over the internet.
“Buy Adobe. Clean out the dreck. Discontinue Windows versions of Photoshop, Dreamweaver, Illustrator, InDesign, Premiere, etc.”
ITS ABOUT $$$! GET OVER IT! MACS ARE NOT FAITH BASED MACHINES! ARHAHRHRHRHHRHRHRHR!
Metryq: Naaah. Let YouTube give it away!
Apple buys Adobe. But all Windows apps are recoded to perform no better that Mac Word 6.0 with the same feature parity as current Adobe Mac apps. And Photoshop for Windows is RGB and BMP only since so many Windows users already think they can publish a full color brochure from Excel or PowerPoint. Then, promise upgrades for a few years while working only on next-gen Mac apps.
“Self-abusive animatronic taxidermy”
Isn’t that a Seattle band? I think I saw them on TRL.
“I disagree. It would force all creatives to the Mac.”
And I’m sure all their brand-new customers will be extremely gleeful about having to buy all new computers! (Just like all the Emagic customers.)
Few things would foster more ill-will against Apple.
Ray……Buying out Clearasil will defnitely change the face of computing.
Ha ha I laughed so hard at that I farted.
Ray
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@botox
http://images.apple.com/pr/library/2000/oct/consolidatedfinancialstatem.pdf
total assets in sept 1999 were 5.2 bln,
total liabilities in sept 1999 were 2.0 bln,
that´s 3.2bln in 1999
I guess that was quite some less in 1997 (and not 4 – 6 bln) , but I can´t find any older numbers. anybody help me out?
Matt
http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=107357&p=irol-SECText&TEXT=aHR0cDovL2NjYm4uMTBrd2l6YXJkLmNvbS94bWwvZmlsaW5nLnhtbD9yZXBvPXRlbmsmaXBhZ2U9MTEwNTE2NiZhdHRhY2g9T04=
aaah, I found the 10-k from 1998:
page 34: CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
says:
total assets in sept 1997 were 4.2 bln,
total liabilities in sept 1997 were 3.0 bln,
for a total of 1.2 bln
I guess that´s a pretty good job Jobs did:
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Going from 1.2 bln to 10.0 bln (give or take a couple of hundred millions
Matt
Apple isn’t going to be acquiring some small-time gadget manufacturer who makes television tuners. They need distribution channels, manufacturing plants, brand identity, and more importantly, a company whose own painstaking efforts to produce quality products is matched only by Apple’s.
Adobe doesn’t advance Apple’s agenda. Five years ago that kind of move would have been seen as brilliant but at the end of the day that kind of acquisition will have squandered the cash surplus.
At one time, Apple owned the desktop publishing market and at a time when print-to-paper was the coin of the realm but has since been supplanted by electronic media and the digital landscape.
Adobe would only provide Apple with modest increases in revenue and market share but only if they spent millions more promoting the desktop computer and therein lies the rub.
The desktop has become a ball and chain.
If Apple wanted to turn the technology world upside down and send shock-waves throughout the industry they would acquire a consumer electronics giant like Sony or Matsushita.
They could then spend millions promoting the virtues of the digital cocoon that provides total immersion into an environment of textures, sight, and sound.
MDNW: really
I am for sale; but I am not cheap.
I think for a simple billion or two I could be swept up.
Steve, give me a call.
It’s obvious, Apple + Intel.
That is one merger that really would change the face of computing.
How ironic if Apple were to buy Dell. After all of these years of Apple users telling PC users NOT to buy Dell, and to buy a Mac instead! Funny.
But this would be a good move. Think about it. Apple is aiming at Dell with their lower prices and higher quality boxes. Dell just purchased Alienware. Apple could use the Alienware machines as high end gaming machines — shipping with OS X and Windows — and dump the rest of the Alienware line. Dell machines would cease to exist, and Apple would just need to give Dell users customer service for a period of time.
Dell’s current users would be forced to purchase an HP (or some other crappy brand) or an Apple the next time they bought a machine. There is no hope for HP in that scenario, since their machines are even poorer quality than Dell machines.
Apple buys Microsoft…. and Dell…. there we go…
release one final update for windows, all it does is display an apple logo, and prints out directions to your nearest apple store.
Apple Windows Vista 2.0… they WERE SERIOUS!!!
Where does the US$10BN cash number come from?
Checking Apple’s annual reports on Reuters 3000 Xtra
Cash & Equivalents
24Sep05 3,491m
25Sep04 2,969m
27Sep03 3,396m
28Sep02 2,252m
29Sep01 2,310m
30Sep00 1,191m
25Sep99 1,326m
25Sep98 1,481m
26Sep97 1,230m
27Sep96 1,552m
29Sep95 756m
30Sep94 1,203m
24Sep93 676m
25Sep92 498m
27Sep91 604m
‘Cash & Cash Equivalents’ are not Total Assets, but a component of Total Assets. For these figures are:
Total Assets
24Sep05 11,551m
25Sep04 8,050m
27Sep03 6,815m
28Sep02 6,298m
29Sep01 6,021m
30Sep00 6,803m
25Sep99 5,161m
25Sep98 4,289m
26Sep97 4,233m
27Sep96 5,364m
29Sep95 6,231m
30Sep94 5,302.75m
24Sep93 5,171.41m
25Sep92 4,223.69m
27Sep91 3,493.6m
So where does 10 billion dollars of cash come from? Is that ‘The Mac Observer’s forecast of Sep06 position?
Buster,
No kiddng? so did I
But I still think that if they buy anything it would be a gaming company.
or maybe they’ll buy alienware from dell…now I’m just bloviating
me – …just make the Universal Binary for OS X a priority and the Windows versions the red headed step child that comes out 6-9 mo. later.
Reverse discrimination, good idea, another step closer to being like the the rest of the industry that has excluded Apple. Let’s roll in the mud with the other animals, or maybe the answer is a higher road?
btw – do you know what “red headed step child” takes it’s origins from?
Corel+Apple=A wake up call for Adobe and Microsoft. An Apple revised version of Painter, DRAW, and Wordperfect. Spells $$$$$$ no matter what language u speak.
Sun Microsystems+Apple=A wake up call for IBM and HP. Java, Staroffice+Wordperfect(see above), Solaris, and most of all a better foothold on the server market.
The best features of Sun, Corel, and Apple combined. My nips are hard just thinking of it all!
Pete Peterson,
Stop with the buyer’s remorse crap already. Two threads of that is enough.
If you don’t like what is being sold…don’t buy it.
I bought one vacuum cleaner when I really wanted a Dyson…I had buyer’s remorse. So I sold it on eBay and bought the Dyson I really wanted. Turns out that someone out there really wanted the vacuum that I didn’t.
Buyer’s remorse is relative. Some people won’t be happy no matter what they get, you seem like that type.
I’ll repeat what others have said before: i predict Apple will do something with wireless and mobile computing. It’s about extending their existing strengths. Laptops make up about 50% of sales and ‘analysts’ keep saying the ipod will get buried by cellphones so Apple will create a couple of kick ass products in those spaces coupled with a wireless infrastructure.
This article really got me thinking, so instead of writing a five-page comment here, I posted it on my blog:
Apple’s Rainy-Day Fund
For the six month period ending April 1, 2006 Apple increased their Cash and Cash Equivalents by 2,855m ending the period at 6,346m.
$10 billion in cash? Maybe by the end of the year – but that’s speculation. But for now Apple is still over $3 billion short of this reporters claims. Adding their short-term investments to their cash still only brings them up to just over $8 billion.
Source: Apple 10-Q for Quarterly Period Ended April 1, 2006 (PDF)
Definitions:
Cash & Cash Equivalents are assets that are completely liquid assets. Money that could be used immediately to buy-back stock or pay shareholder dividends.
Short-Term Investments are cash assets that a company puts into investments with a duration of less than one year. These assets are not as readily available as cash, but they do earn a higher return.
Cash and Cash Equivalents plus Short Term Investments give shares immediate value.
LastOneStanding,
Red heads have long been discriminated against, the Egytians killed them. Moses, King David, and Esau are referred to as “ruddy” which some translators believe means “red headed”.
It is one of the few biggoted remarks that can still be made.
The red head reference refers to an adulterous relationship in which a women forces her husband to raise her bastard as his child under the law. The obvious red hair is noted by all, so the beatings are a result of the step father’s hatred and embarrassment. In older socities it was even required as a warning to others to not stray, or at least stay away from redheads. Unfortunately, since red hair can skip generations there are those who were beaten and disowned under false accusations.
LastOneStanding,
Why red headed step child? Why not slope eyed Jap, or zipper faced gook?
Oh, how about towel headed step child? I like that one.
See, all you have to do is use a different bigoted statement to piss off a lot more people.
Check their last 10K filing:
http://yahoo.brand.edgar-online.com/fetchFilingFrameset.aspx?dcn=0001104659-06-031303&Type=HTML
and search for “Total current assets”
Oops. 10-Q
(You’re welcome.
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”smile” style=”border:0;” /> )
And the number is at 11 Billion now according to that, since that includes other semiliquid assets. Actual cash is only $7ish Billion, but the whole number is often considered “Cash On Hand.”
Jerry T,
How about “pissy little geek whining in a forum”?
“How about ‘pissy little geek whining in a forum’?”
Whoa. Now you’ve done it. That describes nearly every single poster ever including me.
THAT’S NOT FAIR ! ! ! Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhh ! ! !
<constipation>
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”shut eye” style=”border:0;” /> </constipation>
Apple buying TiVo wouldn’t shock me at all…and then sync the TV with the Video iPod…or soemthing like that…
10,000,000,000? If I were apple, I would buy a really big house. I’m talking 10B big. Maybe on the moon?
“I would buy a really big house.”
How about the Gates Mansion? Then, Steve could kick Bill out and lock the, um . . . well, you know. Melinda can stay. He’ll need a maid.
oh shaddup,
That’s true, he did seem like a whiner to me too.
You on the other hand…if you’d like a mouth full of Millwall let me know. I can help with that.
88
Jerry Y – I was simply curious what it meant. The web seems to cofirm what Schmutz said. Thank you for validating the rest of my post. Hatred and anger hasn’t exactly resolved any of the current world problems, have they?
A stock dividend would be nice. About as likely as Vista shipping with all of its promised features, but nice.
10,000,000,000? That is one big twinkie.
Fast Forward: 2007
Apple buys Digg.com and YouTube.com
The origins of the phrase “red-headed step child are not all that clear.
The two scenarios it is most commonly are attributed to:
(1) the army of (mostly) red-headed children scattered about England after viking raids
(2) the (often) red headed offspring of afro and caucasian americans born between the early 1700s and roughly 1930.
In either case, the red hair indicated often violent infidelity, and the child was often the focus of the resulting embarrassment and anger.
These are just popularly attributed scenarios, not necessarily actually how the phrase came about.
Actually, it’s just occurred to me that the phrase was used incompletely. I think the full expression is: “beaten like a red-headed step-child”. I think the original post, probably should have substituted with a phrase like: “white elephant” or “albatross” instead.
Not that it’s that important
Why on earth would anyone buy Micro$oft?
Buy SAP instead and Apple will rule The World. Buy both Adobe and SAP ASAP.
“Founded in 1972 as Systems Applications and Products in Data Processing, SAP is the recognized leader in providing collaborative business solutions for all types of industries and for every major market.
Serving more than 34,600 customers worldwide, SAP is the world’s largest business software company and the world’s third-largest independent software provider overall.”
Why on earth would anyone buy Micro$oft?
Buy SAP instead and Apple will rule The World. Buy both Adobe and SAP ASAP.
“Founded in 1972 as Systems Applications and Products in Data Processing, SAP is the recognized leader in providing collaborative business solutions for all types of industries and for every major market.
Serving more than 34,600 customers worldwide, SAP is the world’s largest business software company and the world’s third-largest independent software provider overall.”
Apple should buy controlling interest in Adobe and lean on the Windows versions a little. Slowly win back all those art departments that the IT people forced to the Win Version of the app the week it came out, thus finally getting ALL Macs off “their” networks. May be a loss leader for a few years, but eventually those departments would be reintegrating Macs back into the corporate world. They should do the same thing with AutoCAD. Controlling interest would finally get us a industry strength Mac Killer App in this area. Removing yet another roadblock. Nobody’s going to retrain all their employees when a simple new computer and upgrade of their existing license will suffice. And again, the IT mindshare has to eat it, nothing they can do about it.
Controlling interest gets Apple the ability to dictate that a Mac version comes first and is fully integrated with a Apple GUI, the rest is the dregs and it’ll happen when they get around to it. Buying hardware companies like Dell is useless, someone else will just fill the void. People buy a <insert gaming station> to just play <inset game>, it’s the same for a lot of computer buyers. AutoCad and Photoshop are two such distinct apps and are heavily relied upon in corporate settings. Apple needs to establish bigger footholds and move out from the ledge it’s been hanging onto. Make a move.
Oh yeah, Tivo won’t work. Everyone and their sister are rolling their own PVR’s these days, many with streaming media options from the home PC are just a year or so off. Even DirecTV is rolling their own starting this year and getting rid of the ones Tivo has built the last several years. The writing is on the wall there.
As much as Apple is copied by M$, Apple does a little themselves. Features introduced by faithful third parties get pulled in on a regular basis. Apple just isn’t as shameful in doing so.
The reason I mention this, is why buy an Adobe or Tivo (as Driver said) when you can create it yourself? Adobe carries en enterprise customer cache that Apple has never figured out to build for themselves. That’s where I see the value in hoarding the cash – buying the enterprise. That’s where the real money is (for computers, not for the consumer electronics like the iPod).
Sony’s struggling mightily. Do we have a new Sony being made here?
Apple should buy Nvidia (market cap less than $10B). Then their rumored aspirations of gaming would more easily come true. Buying Nvidia might also get the small, but dedicated Hardcore Windows gamers to switch to mac and that would in turn lure the gaming companies to Apple. I’m not a gamer, I just think it’s a good idea. I agree with AutoDesk and Elgato too.
Oooh — SAP and Nvidia are both good ideas. But isn’t Nvidia being bought by someone else now?
Although SAP has a market cap about equal to Apple’s, so there wouldn’t be much leverage:
http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=SAP
However, buying a stake in the company and putting a friendly face or two on the board would go a long way.
Driver: The Tivo angle would work well because Apple can add the DRM necessary to make the MPAA and TV studios happy with moving content from a DVR onto computers and iPods, et cetera.
Also, add an iPod doc and it becomes a stereo, hooked up to your entertainment system.
I think Tivo would be a good bet for Apple, and a good fit for Tivo as a company. Otherwise, as you said, Tivo is doomed.
And zupchuck: the reasons Apple should buy Tivo rather than roll their own is:
– Patents
– Marketshare
– Great brand (synonymous with DVRs)
– Existing business deals
Patents, for example, like the ones that a federal judge ruled earlier this month that EchoStar satellite TV infringed upon for their DVR service:
http://yahoo.businessweek.com/technology/content/aug2006/tc20060818_359849.htm
Welborn:
“Oooh — SAP and Nvidia are both good ideas. But isn’t Nvidia being bought by someone else now?”
No, ATI (Nvidia’s main competitor) is being bought out by AMD but Nvidia is staying an independant company(for now at least).
Why would adding a iPod dock be such a huge deal? I just think… So what? Denon’s already incorporated iPod dock into models of their lineup, we already have the AirPort Extreme? iPod on a Tivo would not be huge. DRM is nothing as there are other media players out and will find ways to do it as well. Personally I don’t think low res audio is going to do it. I want Apple to license their Airport technology (at least the wired part of it) to companies like Denon. They already have ethernet ports, they already do Plays For Sure Windows music, why not allow them to play Hi Res songs direct from my Apple via the network instead of having to have yet another device in between? Oh yeah, it’s called a DVD/CD player. As far as that relates to Tivo… Sorry I just think they would be buying the recognition the brand has. Tivo wasn;’t even the first to market there, RePlay was and it has a much nicer interface. And as far as the DRM stuff, Tivo has One HD recorder, only works OTA once DirecTV phases out the MPEG2 hardware for their own MPEG4 stuff. It’s fizzling out, Time Warner has their own PVR’s. TW is not going to license another companys interface and pay royalties when they can do a so-so UI and get by. Which they are, and it’s working. Tivo is quickly becoming a bit-player, just has the name that people incorrectly use (Tivo=PVR/DNR).
As far as a cell network or another PDA like Palm, that’s rubbish IMO. Just yet another company in a market already flooded with competitors. Regardless if they add iPod capability or not, which in itself cuts sales of their stand alones.
Again Apple needs those Killer Apps that really have no other competition in the Field. Photoshop, AutoCad are at the top of the list. Word, Excel and Powerpoint are as well but not going to happen. No matter how much Apple spends with iWork it doesn’t, in itself, significantly sell computers. PS and AC do. Think of it as planting seeds. If you want shade it all begins with little seeds here and there. They need to get more computers on people desks at WORK. What they use in corporate settings, they’ll use at home.
MrMcLargeHuge: Ah, yes. Thanks!
Driver: It wouldn’t just be adding a dock, it’s adding the DRM into the Tivo so that the content recorded on it can only be played by that customer (like content purchased on iTunes).
That way, all the legality issues with content coming easily off DVRs is solved — it is for personal use. The iPod dock would also enable playing of iTMS purchased video on your TV, and be yet another way to get music from your iPod to play on a home stereo system, but with a nice remote control that has a huge display you can see across the room. (Apple could make a limited iTunes visualizer for playing during the music.)
Sorry, anything having to do with integrating iTunes audio or video into existing Televisions and Home Audio setups is a joke at today’s standards. High Def TV is here, size of displays are getting bigger and the low res video or audio just doesn’t cut it watching on 40 – 50″ tv’s or listening to it on any decent HiFi system (I’m not talking boom box here). And audio, unless one is using a lossless encoding is also less than optimum. BluRay/HDDVD will allow me to burn my own uncompressed audio from my existing CD collection and get many hours of all my music on a single disc, why should I care about DRM as it applys there. Why would I care about getting DRM’d HD from a Tivo to my computer? Doesn’t do me any good there. Largest average screen people have on their computer is a 17-19″. That’s a step down (and more importantly) backwards from their avg 27″-40″ TV. Besides HDMI/HDCP handles that right now. All Apple has to do to get it to work today is to put a fully compliant HDCP video card and HDMI port on their computers and it will not only work with Tivo, it’ll also work with Time Warner and other DVR’s.
Look at the bigger picture and look long term, at least 3-4 yrs ahead.
Welborn,
Tivo may have marketshare, etc. in the low-def market, but it’s a new ballgame with true HD. Sure, great brand. So is Apple. I don’t know enough about their patents to comment on them being a hinderance to Apple rolling their own. Somehow, I think Apple can make business arrangement more compelling than Apple…
It just isn’t a compelling buy to me when I can plug my Mac in my STB’s IEE1394 port and record and playback what I want.
Most customers won’t be plugging firewire into their TV any time soon, and buying an extra computer to set up near their TV also isn’t really an option. The average consumer just wants a box.
And, HD is fine — switch to H.264 on the new boxes, and have a Blu-Ray drive in the box. If it’s branded and sold as a DVR (especially with the nae “Tivo” and an attachment to the iPod brand), the average consumer won’t see that it’s really basically another computer in the living room. It’s just a glorified Blu-Ray player/DVR/iPod media center that can serve content to any computer in the house.
Just FYI: Sony has had Firewire ports on part of their TV product lines for over 2 years.
MDN: I totally agree. Apple should buy Adobe. If they don’t they’re just waiting for Microsoft to do it. Besides, it’s a completely perfect fit. Almost all Adobe-using people use Macs, and if Microsoft ever threatens to cut off office (or cripple it) Apple can do the same.
I think steve needs to take it easy. If yah nadidameen. I think i drank to much carlos rossi, im feelin hella bossy and before you know it i’ll be cookin up game like emeril lagossi